The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1887-12-04

/
! tenances were masks. In it one can
study the ev olution of the drama from
it's earliest beginnings. and in it trace
| the connection between the Chinese
and Japanese stage. Modern japanese
drama presents the height of real
ism and the limit of the natural
school, while the Chinese stage
is still fast bound by the old traditions
and conVentionalities. Like the classic
literature of Japan, this classic dance is
plainly Chinese audit is only in the No
! performance that one finds the highly
pitched, artificial voices, the rant and
| bombaSt, the mechanical walk, the
imaginary mountains and streams, and
the slain heroes walking off the
stage, as in Chinese plays. The awful
drums and fddles of the celestial
drama are lacking, and instead are used
the queer, spoo,-s laped drums, the
pipes and flutes seen now only in
temple treasures and in paintings.
In the olden times the No perform
ance, given only in the great palaces,
monasteries and yashikis, was wholly
an affair for the upper classes, and the
masses never saw it. nor could they
have understood its classic and conVen-
tiOnal language, and its Intricate sym
bOlism. In these nineteen years since
the estoratiCn and the rush Of foreign
progress, performances of the No have
been few and far between, and the old
artists, prohibited from teaching but
the feWest number of successors, bid
fair to die and take their secrets with
them. After these many years of chas-
ing foreign fashions and putting away
every thing Japanese, the upper classes
are now instituting a revival of many
of the old customs and accomplish
ments. The koto, an instrument half
approaching the guitar and either, but
with q string board five feet long and
one foot wide. that rests on the
floor before the player, is being studied
by the young ladies of the first families,
and all the classical music is
being revived. Appropriately enough,
ell the upper circles of the capital
rushed to the No Kagura at Shiba this
week to see the No gwen for the benefit
of the Toxic Charity Hospital. This
hospital is the pet charity of the court
ladies, and all the august princesses,
coqntesses and warehouses; of the
imperial household attended. and
officials of every degree were in the
audience.
The dance or play took place on an
open pavilion of stage with gallery
on the left communicating with the
green-room. The back wall was painted
with large pine tree, and there was
no other scenery or any drop curtains.
The audience surrounded the stage on
three sides on sloping floor, divided
by bamboo rails into boxes or sections
each six feet square. The people sat
on their heels in japanese fash on, ana
no high hats obscured any ones view
Back of TIE audience and facing the
stage were the boxes, the middle one
reserved for the Emperor and Empress,
but being unoccupied had bamboo cur
tains drawn closely at the front. The
boxes on either side of the imperial
box were occupied by groups of
court ladies. princess and her
suite looking serenely down from each
box. These ladies wore the picturesque
old Court costume which is now rarely
seen, the Empress wearing foreign
dress. and exacting it from her ladies
in waiting at all public or social affairs.
The PrinCesses in the boxes wore purple
kimonos, the one Grape and the other
gauze, and both embroidered all over
with detached sprigs of flowers. The
kimonos were bound at the waist with
a belt of Grape, and the gown drawn up
in deep fold like tuck, that fell over
and concealed the belt. This is the in
door or formal costume of the court
ladies, as on ceremonial occasions they
wear over it loose unbelted kimono of
rich brocade. The Prineesses' costumes
did not differ from those of the ladies
them in any way, sew
eral others wearing purple gowns, one
black Grape gown embroidered with
sprigs of cherry blossoms, and another
a pale golden green Grape, embroidered
with bamboo stems and f1ocks of little
gray sparrows. Folds of white silk
were laid in the open, pointed necks of
the gowns. The hair was b4ushed back
from the face, and just behind the ears
was spread out in a thin, fat
halo, that set each in relief as
much as a Gainsborough hat. A
special pomade or glue is used to hold !
the glossy blue black hair out in these |
wings, and the ends of the hair, knotted !
IN small butterfly loops at the back of |
the head, are held by long curved pins |
Of amber tortoise shell. The Princesses
had the same thin halos of hair spread |
ike discs at the backs of their heads, |
but their imperial blood was betokened |
by their wearing the rest of their locks |
hanging loosely down their backs, |
tied here and there by wisps of silky |
white mulberry paper. In their boxes |
they sat on their heels in the good old |
Japanese way, and there was something |
so prim, set aad statuesque in the pose |
Of these quaint figures that they seemed |
all the time rather more ornaments in
bisque or ivory than animate beings. |
Although they gave close attention
turing the performance, at each inter
mission they visited from box to box,
and battered out to the Withdrawing |
rooms, where tea and dainties were
lerVed them.
The No performance lasted from 1 to
o'clock on the afternoons of three
days, four or five acts
n dances being given each day.
The Japanese brought librettos
With them, from which they studied
he plot and course of the classic tale,
'Et an interpreter from one of the con-
ulstes could hardly understand enough
f the ancient phrsseology and idiom
rom the speech of the actors to tell as
more than the mere outline of the
rama. The No presented the acme of
be conventional, and the movements
f the actors were stiff, stilted and con-
entionsl to the last degree. They en-
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